Is Lynn a safer or more dangerous city this year compared to last year?
That is the question we asked in reviewing crime statistics released by the Lynn Police Department.
Total crimes reported in the first half of 2019 and 2020 totaled 1,099 in 2019 versus 1106 in 2020. That is a 2 percent increase.
Robberies and burglaries were each down by double digit percentages, while assaults and larcenies were both up slightly.
Lynn experienced four murders in the first half of 2020 versus two for the same period in 2019. The city had one more murder in July, putting it on a pace to exceed last year’s death toll of six.
There were 19 rapes committed locally in the first half of 2019 compared to 17 committed in the first half of this year.
Statistics are just numbers on a page unless you are the loved one of a victim or you are a victim. Burglary rates may have dropped in the city but that is small consolation if your house or car is vandalized and your possessions stolen.
Thankfully, relatively few people experience crime. The FBI Uniform Crime Report listed 563 violent crimes in Lynn in 2018 out of a population of 95,000.
But perception is a byproduct of crime and everyone has their own safety assessment of their street and neighborhood.
It’s impossible not to factor coronavirus’ economic upheaval and social isolation into crime statistic analysis. Counselors and police predicted domestic violence reports would rise and Lynn crime statistics bore out the prediction: In March when the pandemic trapped victims and perpetrators at home, there was a 31 percent increase in domestic-related incidents that police responded to in the city compared to March, 2019.
By June, the increase was still significant, albeit reduced to 18.8 percent, with 505 domestic-related incidents reported this year compared to 425 during the same timeframe in 2019.
In our view, Lynn’s crime statistics from 2020 must be viewed in the larger context of the 38 percent drop in crime locally since 2016. The numbers must also be compared to statewide statistics from the FBI Uniform Crime Report, which ranks Lynn #11 in the state in terms of the rate of violent crime against people and property. Lynn’s rate of 5.95 violent crimes per 1,000 residents looks great compared to #1 Fall River’s 10.10 rate. For context, Peabody (#25) had a 2.98 rate, and Revere (#15) had 4.77 violent crimes per thousand.
All told, the city of Lynn is not doing badly. Of course, we can always do better.
